Drawer connectors comprise a pair of multi-terminal mateable connector halves. One half of the drawer connector may be mounted to a panel at a substantially inaccessible location within an electrical device, such as a photostatic copier or a computer. The opposed half of the drawer connector may be mounted to a second panel which may be constructed to slide into the copier, computer or other apparatus, such that the respective connector halves achieve a blind mating with one another. Drawer connectors may be used, for example, on the paper trays of certain photostatic copiers and on various replaceable components of computers or telecommunications equipment. Thus, drawer connectors generally define portions of an electrical apparatus that require frequent connection and disconnection. The blind mating inherent with drawer connectors require the connector halves to be provided with appropriate means for guiding the connector terminals into mating electrical connection with one another. Drawer connectors may further comprise floatable mountings to facilitate at least initial alignment.
The typical prior art drawer connector half includes a plurality of AC power lines or DC signal lines permanently connected to terminals which are in turn permanently mounted in the drawer connector housing. More particularly, the signal or power leads may be prepared and terminated with a crimp termination. The terminated lead may then be urged into a force fit or other locked mounted position within the drawer connector housing.
Repeated connection and disconnection of the drawer connector halves subject the terminals therein to significant wear. The effects of this wear may be exacerbated by the blind mating common with drawer connectors. The wear caused by the frequent connection and disconnection and/or by misalignment during the blind mating can easily damage one or more of the terminals in the drawer connector. Such damage is most likely to occur in the smaller more fragile DC signal carrying terminals.
Damage to a terminal in most prior art drawer connectors has necessitated complete replacement of the prior art drawer connector, including all of the labor intensive and costly termination work on the leads and terminals of the connector. For example, the permanent connection of the conductive DC leads to the terminals and the permanent mounting of the terminals in the prior art drawer connector housing, have prevented the replacement of any damaged components in the typical prior art connector. Thus, upon damage to any terminal in a prior art drawer connector, all of the DC and/or AC leads to the prior art drawer connector generally would be severed and the drawer connector half with the costly termination work therein would be discarded. The severed leads would then be reterminated to appropriate terminals, and the terminals would be permanently mounted in a new drawer connector housing. Thus, the initial termination work, at least for the small DC signal lines, is discarded and new termination work is carried out.
The prior art drawer connectors have attempted to deal with the problem of damage to terminals primarily by constructing the drawer connector housing halves to achieve a certain degree of self-aligning during the blind mating process. One example of such a prior art drawer connector is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 which issued to Blair et al. on March 3, 1987. The drawer connector shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 includes mateable male and female terminals. The male terminals are surrounded by a forwardly projecting shroud. The female terminals are disposed in a housing that is guided into the shroud surrounding the male terminals by forwardly projecting guides. U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 also shows a float mount for the drawer connector which comprises an enlarged flange aperture adapted to receive an elliptical elastomeric insert. A shoulder screw having a diameter smaller than that of the aperture effectively mounts the connector to the panel in a manner which permits the connector to float in the direction of the major axis of the elliptical insert. The permanent eletrical terminations, and the permanent mounting of terminals in the housing of U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 are substantially as described above. Thus, the drawer connector of U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 suffers from the previously described deficiencies. Furthermore, the plural part float mechanism is complex and costly to assemble.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 which issued to Ege on March 30, 1976 is directed to a terminal block assembly for plural AC female quick-connect terminals and associated AC leads. One terminal block shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 includes a plurality of double ended blade terminals mounted therein. One end of each double ended blade terminal extends from the forwardly facing end of the associated terminal block such that the blade terminals define the forwardmost mating end of the terminal block. The opposed end of each double ended plate terminal is disposed in a rearward cavity of the terminal block dimensioned to receive a female quick-connect terminal. The other terminal block shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 includes a plurality of double ended terminals, one end of which defines a rearwardly extending blade and the other end of which defines a forwardly extending blade receiving contact structure. The forward blade receiving end of each terminal in the second block is disposed in a cavity into which the first block is receivable. The rearward end of each terminal in the second block is disposed in a rearward recess dimensioned to receive a female quick-connect terminal. The terminal block assembly of U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 is considered undesirable in several respects. First, no means for accommodating float of the blocks is provided. The minimal float provided for some terminals relative to their associated blocks is undesirable in that the terminals will tend to shift to a position of minimum contact pressure. Second, the forward ends of the male terminals are unprotected and would be damaged during most drawer connector matings. Third, the terminal block assembly of U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 includes no means for accommodating the arrays of DC leads that are essential parts of many drawer connectors. Furthermore, the teaching of U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,080 would be difficult to apply to terminal block assemblies or drawer connectors having a large number of leads in that extensive time and space would be required in assuring proper lead-for-lead polarity of the various female quick-connect terminals. Similar structures are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,944,240 which issued to Barber in 1960 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,746,022 which issued to Gilbert in 1956.
Another prior art drawer connector is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,222 which issued to Dambach on December 24, 1985 and which is assigned to the assignee of the subject invention. Although this connector performs well, it is desirable to provide an improved drawer connector that achieves better terminal alignment, reduced terminal failure and that minimizes the work that may be required upon a failure of a terminal therein.
In view of the above, it is an object of the subject invention to provide a drawer connector for arrays of DC leads that reduces the amount of work and the costs involved upon the failure of a terminal in the connector.
Another object of the subject invention is to provide a drawer connector wherein the leads to the connector are terminated in modular connectors which in turn are pluggable into the appropriate drawer connector assembly.
An additional object of the subject invention is to provide a modular drawer connector assembly wherein portions of the assembly subject to repeated connection, disconnection and associated wear are readily separable from portions of the assembly at which the leads are terminated.
A further object of the subject invention is to provide a drawer connector assembly with a float mount to facilitate alignment of the connector halves and to thereby reduce wear on the terminals therein.
Still another object of the subject invention is to provide a modular drawer connector having a plurality of terminals securely mounted in and protected by a drawer connector housing.